Tag: Baroness Stern

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-10-28.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the October report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons on HM Prison Liverpool that the prison’s daily routine was chaotic and unpredictable” and that 44 per cent of prisoners were locked in their cells during the working day.”

Lord Faulks

HMP Liverpool is committed to implementing the recommendations of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons report of 20 October 2015.

Hours worked in Industry have increased month on month from 57% to 88%. A new activity centre has been opened and provides additional regime places for 100 prisoners. Vulnerable prisoners have been re-allocated to alternative regime places within the prison following the disbanding of B wing. This unit did not have activity places allocated to it. Prison laundry activity places have been allocated to prisoners located on the drug rehabilitation unit providing additional regime places.

Plans to introduce a new Welcome centre which will allocate shorter term prisoners to activity places more quickly, will soon become operational.

Further improvement methods such as electronic prescribing are currently being piloted to improve the efficiency of treatment and medication practices, thereby providing a more consistent regime.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-10-28.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the October report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons on HM Prison Liverpool, what action has been taken to ensure that when force is used in HM Prison Liverpool it is the minimum necessary to ensure safety.

Lord Faulks

HMP Liverpool is committed to implementing the recommendations of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons report of 20 October 2015.

Restraint is only used as a last resort where no other form of intervention is appropriate. HM Prison Liverpool is committed to ensuring that the minimum force necessary in any situation is applied.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the 20 new Protector” drones to be procured under the Scavenger Programme will be the General Atomics certifiable Predator B or any other model or variant.”

Earl Howe

No decision has yet been made on the choice of platform to meet the Protector (formerly Scavenger) requirement. This will be determined as part of the main investment decision, which is scheduled for 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what domestic legislation they consider to be relevant to the lethal operation of Reaper drones in Syria from RAF Waddington.

Earl Howe

The UK conducts all its military operations in accordance with international law (including International Humanitarian Law) and members of HM Armed Forces are subject to the criminal law of England and Wales at all times.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many referrals to the RAF mental health care system from members of 13 and 39 squadrons there have been each month over the last year.

Earl Howe

During Financial Year 2014-15, there were fewer than five Regular Royal Air Force personnel from 13 Squadron or 39 Squadron who were seen for an initial assessment at Ministry of Defence Specialist Mental Health Services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of funding allocated to Syria supports non-humanitarian work.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK has delivered over £85 million in non-humanitarian support to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon since the start of the crisis, in addition to the £1.12 billion that has been allocated in humanitarian aid. This has focussed on strengthening the moderate opposition, building resilience against extremists, fostering civil society structures in besieged areas, and laying the foundations for a more peaceful and inclusive future for Syria.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2016-07-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Germany about its recognition of the killings of Herero and Nama people in 1904–08 as genocide, and whether in the light of those discussions they have any plans formally to recognise those events as genocide.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The Government have not discussed the killings of the Herero and Nama peoples with the Government of Germany.

It is the policy of the Government that any judgment on whether genocide has occurred is a matter for judicial decision, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the report of HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HMP Nottingham in respect of its conclusion that during the working day about half of the prisoners held there were locked in their cells with nothing to do.

Lord Faulks

The National Offender Management Service has taken immediate action to improve the situation. An experienced temporary Governor was urgently appointed to bring stability and to implement rapid improvements. Subsequently, a new permanent Governor was appointed on 1 February 2015. A review of the staffing levels needed to complete the improvement work required has led to additional staff resources being deployed to the prison. There have been fewer incidents of serious assaults on prisoners and staff, concerted indiscipline and incidents at height since the inspection and there has been a marked improvement in the overall operational stability of the establishment. As with all inspection reports, NOMS will now produce an action plan in response to the recommendations.

Improvements in staffing levels have allowed an increase in the amount of time that prisoners can participate in recreational activities, such as using the gymnasium. It has also enabled prisoners to undertake more educational workshops to enhance employability skills. .

Since the Inspection, HMP Nottingham’s Violence Reduction (VR) Policy has been rewritten and implemented and, in line with the national NOMS VR Policy, requires staff to challenge all forms of violence and apply appropriate sanctions. Additional resources have been allocated to monitoring and managing violence reduction and safer custody. Use of the Independent Adjudicator and/or referral to the Police for consideration of prosecution for violent incidents has increased dramatically. HMP Nottingham continues to challenge all forms of violence and actively promotes a zero tolerance to it. The prison is forging stronger links with the local Police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that, where appropriate, prisoners involved in violence are prosecuted.

The operational capacity of HMP Nottingham was reduced, at the time of the inspection, from 1100 to 1060. There are now regular bedding and clothing checks. This helps to recover items that have been stockpiled by prisoners, to ensure fair allocation of clean clothing and bedding. Additional clothes and bedding have also been issued.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the report of HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HMP Nottingham in respect of its conclusion that levels of violence, including assaults on prisoners and staff, were very high.

Lord Faulks

The National Offender Management Service has taken immediate action to improve the situation. An experienced temporary Governor was urgently appointed to bring stability and to implement rapid improvements. Subsequently, a new permanent Governor was appointed on 1 February 2015. A review of the staffing levels needed to complete the improvement work required has led to additional staff resources being deployed to the prison. There have been fewer incidents of serious assaults on prisoners and staff, concerted indiscipline and incidents at height since the inspection and there has been a marked improvement in the overall operational stability of the establishment. As with all inspection reports, NOMS will now produce an action plan in response to the recommendations.

Improvements in staffing levels have allowed an increase in the amount of time that prisoners can participate in recreational activities, such as using the gymnasium. It has also enabled prisoners to undertake more educational workshops to enhance employability skills. .

Since the Inspection, HMP Nottingham’s Violence Reduction (VR) Policy has been rewritten and implemented and, in line with the national NOMS VR Policy, requires staff to challenge all forms of violence and apply appropriate sanctions. Additional resources have been allocated to monitoring and managing violence reduction and safer custody. Use of the Independent Adjudicator and/or referral to the Police for consideration of prosecution for violent incidents has increased dramatically. HMP Nottingham continues to challenge all forms of violence and actively promotes a zero tolerance to it. The prison is forging stronger links with the local Police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that, where appropriate, prisoners involved in violence are prosecuted.

The operational capacity of HMP Nottingham was reduced, at the time of the inspection, from 1100 to 1060. There are now regular bedding and clothing checks. This helps to recover items that have been stockpiled by prisoners, to ensure fair allocation of clean clothing and bedding. Additional clothes and bedding have also been issued.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken in response to the report of HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HMP Nottingham in respect of its conclusion that cells were routinely overcrowded and prisoners had inadequate access to clean bedding and clean clothes.

Lord Faulks

The National Offender Management Service has taken immediate action to improve the situation. An experienced temporary Governor was urgently appointed to bring stability and to implement rapid improvements. Subsequently, a new permanent Governor was appointed on 1 February 2015. A review of the staffing levels needed to complete the improvement work required has led to additional staff resources being deployed to the prison. There have been fewer incidents of serious assaults on prisoners and staff, concerted indiscipline and incidents at height since the inspection and there has been a marked improvement in the overall operational stability of the establishment. As with all inspection reports, NOMS will now produce an action plan in response to the recommendations.

Improvements in staffing levels have allowed an increase in the amount of time that prisoners can participate in recreational activities, such as using the gymnasium. It has also enabled prisoners to undertake more educational workshops to enhance employability skills. .

Since the Inspection, HMP Nottingham’s Violence Reduction (VR) Policy has been rewritten and implemented and, in line with the national NOMS VR Policy, requires staff to challenge all forms of violence and apply appropriate sanctions. Additional resources have been allocated to monitoring and managing violence reduction and safer custody. Use of the Independent Adjudicator and/or referral to the Police for consideration of prosecution for violent incidents has increased dramatically. HMP Nottingham continues to challenge all forms of violence and actively promotes a zero tolerance to it. The prison is forging stronger links with the local Police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that, where appropriate, prisoners involved in violence are prosecuted.

The operational capacity of HMP Nottingham was reduced, at the time of the inspection, from 1100 to 1060. There are now regular bedding and clothing checks. This helps to recover items that have been stockpiled by prisoners, to ensure fair allocation of clean clothing and bedding. Additional clothes and bedding have also been issued.